In the radio and television power transmission art, it is necessary or desirable from time to time to transfer the power source from a first antenna to a second antenna; to change from a first power source to a second power source to a single antenna; to disconnect the power source from the antenna and connect it to a load for testing purposes; (The Federal Communications Commission requires testing every six months to see if the station power output is between 110% and 80% of the licensed power of that station); to shift the connection between one power source and a first antenna to a connection between a second power source and a second antenna.
The foregoing situations are illustrative of conditions that require an easily and quickly operable safe switching mechanism. Heretofore, a switching unit called in the trade a Patch Panel has been in widespread use. Such units however are slow in operation as clamps must be removed, the connectors manually shifted and the clamps reapplied.